The O P Jindal Group has emerged as a strong contender for Ispat Industries, the debt-laden company owned by Pramod and Vinod Mittal.
As and when the sector opens up to FDI, the world's second-largest retailer will automatically get equity in Pantaloon Retail or will enjoy right of first refusal, said the sources.
MNP allows a subscriber to change his or her service provider without changing the mobile number.
Key government departments have come to a consensus on the definition of a "group company" in the context of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the wholesale cash & carry trade. Under current policy, while 100 per cent FDI is permitted in wholesale trade, a cash & carry entity can sell only up to 25 per cent of its turnover to group companies.
NTT had earlier sought the combined 63 per cent stake of the promoters and private equity firm General Atlantic Partners, but their exclusive talks failed due to a valuation mismatch.
For over a year Sanjay Chandra, managing director of the Unitech group, has been under a cloud for various reasons.
The company, which finds itself at the centre of the real estate scam, as alleged by the Central Bureau of Investigation, is housed in a dilapidated building, and from the exterior, nobody can ever guess that the fourth floor of MMFSL would be so swanky.
Sajjan Jindal's JSW Energy moved a step closer to securing its coal requirements, signing a definitive agreement with the management of CIC Energy on Wednesday, to buy them out and take control of the Toronto-listed company. CIC Energy has an 'A-grade' mining-cum-power complex called the Mmamabula Energy Complex in Botswana, Africa. The field there is estimated to have 2.6 billion tonnes of high-thermal coal, mostly above 6,000 Kcal/kg of calorific value.
Telcos say tariffs could be cut by up to 20 per cent. While post-paid customers constitute only 5 per cent of the total customer base of 670 million, they make up over 15 per cent of revenues thanks to their relatively higher average revenue per user (Arpu).
A committee of secretaries will be meeting soon to consider a draft proposal, which suggests that decision-making on all policy issues pertaining to FDI be transferred from the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) in the Ministry of Commerce to the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) in the Ministry of Finance.
GE India is embarking on a major localisation drive under which 60-70 per cent of the products that it sells will be manufactured in the country in the next five years. At present, the localisation is about 10 to 20 per cent.
The Aditya Birla Group is back in acquisition mode, as group firm Aditya Birla Nuvo may bid for the carbon black division of Germany's Evonik Industries. The division, with annual sales of $1.3 billion and 1,700 employees across 12 countries, is the second largest in the world.
State-owned National Aviation Company of India Ltd (Nacil), which runs Air India, has approached the government to raise $2.3 billion through external commercial borrowings (ECBs) as part of a plan to restructure its high-cost working capital debt.
Regulator wants the power to fine errant telecom companies.
After Research In Motion (owners of BlackBerry), the home ministry will now turn the screws on Microsoft, Google, IBM and Oracle. These companies provide technology and services for the virtual private networks (VPNs) run by various operators in India. The government will ask them to conform to regulation that allows intelligence agencies to lawfully intercept data. Failure to do so could result in the termination of VPN services by operators using their technology.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has thrown a spanner in the works of a government proposal to liberalise the pricing guidelines of hybrid securities such as foreign direct investment (FDI)-compliant instruments.
Reliance Industries (RIL), India's largest private sector company, is finalising a new alliance with engineering and project management partner Bechtel Corporation, as it prepares to enter the power sector.
The finance ministry is arriving at a consensus to reject a proposal mooted in government to permit foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retailing.
ITC, which has a 14.98 per cent stake in EIH Ltd -- the company that runs the Oberoi chain of hotels -- is planning to subscribe to the upcoming EIH rights issue. This ends speculation that it might pull out after Reliance Industries Ltd picked up a stake in EIH.
The finance ministry has agreed to furnish sovereign guarantees on loans raised by National Aviation Company India Ltd, which flies under the Air India brand name. A top source in the ministry confirmed: "Yes, we will provide sovereign guarantee to Air India on its loans. After all, it is a company owned by the government."
